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No state subsidies for All Aboard Florida, Scott says in stern letter

Florida Gov. Rick Scott wrote to All Aboard Florida president Michael Reininger yesterday, outlining constituent concerns about the express passenger rail service and making one point clear _ no state money will be given to the private company.

“I want to be clear on a critical point: the All Aboard Florida proposal is a private sector venture to construct, operate and maintain a passenger rail system,” Scott wrote. “There will be no state subsidies for this project.”

Scott also asks that a comment period following the release of an environmental impact statement be extended to 90 days from the current agreement of 75 days.

All Aboard Florida, which his seeking a $1.5 billion Federal Railroad Administration loan, plans to run 32 trains per day from Miami to Orlando on the eastern FEC tracks, with stops in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach.

Some northern Palm Beach County and Treasure Coast residents are opposing the service because they fear an increase in traffic, noise and waterway congestion as aging bridges block boats each time a train passes.

“Florida has over a thousand miles of coastline, and access to the water for boating is one of the things that makes Florida so special,” Scott wrote. “I understand that All Aboard Florida has taken specific steps for the New River Crossing, including the reduction of the bridge cycle to limit the delays faced by boaters. During the public comment period, please also review the situation at the St. Lucie and Loxahatchee river crossings to address local concerns.”

The letter may be in response to a Florida Department of Transportation press release sent out yesterday clarifying items in an article about All Aboard Florida.

The press release reiterated that the $10 million added to the state budget for crossing upgrades to allow for quiet zones would go to local governments, not All Aboard Florida, and “does not replace money All Aboard Florida would have to had to spend.”

Also, the release tries to address what it points to as misconceptions about the $214 million given to the Orlando International Airport for an intermodal center that includes parking, rental car and rail. The project has been planned since the 1990s and “is not simply a station for All ABoard Florida,” the release states.

“Our agreement stipulates that any funding invested for non-airport use must be returned to the state, thus any terminal used by All Aboard Florida would not be subsidized by state dollars,” Scott wrote in his letter.